Manolo for the Brides » Fun stuff

What Once Was Lost….

Twistie — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 19:55:06 +0000

Wedding rings are precious, but they’re also small fiddly things it’s surprisingly easy to lose.

The couple shown above are Lena and Ola Pahlsson. One day in 1995, while Lena was in the midst of a marathon baking session for Christmas, she lost her ring.

The couple searched over and over. When they remodeled the kitchen several years later, they even looked under and behind appliances and under the floorboards. No luck.

Sixteen years after the ring disappeared, Lena was in the vegetable garden pulling up some delicious carrots, when one of them proved to have something surprising on it: her long-lost wedding ring!

This is just one of seven amazing stories of lost and found wedding and engagement rings in an article over at Neatorama. Go read them for a combination good laugh and glowy feeling of things coming right in the end. Oh, and to get a couple good ideas of what never to do with your wedding ring!

There’s Not Another Like It

Twistie — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 18:32:59 +0000

Patriotic wedding gowns are nothing new. Wedding gowns based on the flag of a country – while not terribly common – have been made commercially and sold for years, if not decades. But it’s not terribly often that a bride chooses to celebrate her favorite team that way.

That’s only one reason that Karen Bell’s wedding gown is so remarkable. It’s also a rather ambitious DIY upcycling project. When Karen and her new husband Simon decided to tie the knot, they reasoned that since they’d both been married before in white weddings, they wanted to do something different. They decided to celebrate their hometown of Manchester, England across the Atlantic… oh, sorry. Flashback to that production of Hair I saw once. Anyway, yes, their hometown of Manchester, England where they both still live, and the football team they both support.

Over the years, Simon had developed a collection of Manchester-themed shirts. He handed these over to Karen who spent the next eight months at her sewing machine turning them into the gown shown above.

After the wedding, the happy couple went straight to romantic Etihad Stadium to watch their beloved team play. There is no word on whether or not the bride changed her clothes first.

Whatever the case, I do wish them the very best of British luck, and may Manchester City win often.

That Cuts the Cake!

Twistie — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 18:05:40 +0000

Have you ever wondered how to figure out how many people that cake you just made will serve at a wedding? Turns out the good folks at Wilton have a handy guide to help you out.

Oh, and if your cake isn’t going to be either round or square, don’t panic! They include equally handy guides for tiers shaped like hearts, flowers, ovals, and paisley, too.

If you’re the one baking your own cake (or you’re giving the job to someone close to you who is a great baker but hasn’t done this level of work before), you can also find great tips on the site for how to construct, decorate, display, and even transport this all-important confectionary creation to your reception site.

There is a section of recipes, but I have to say they didn’t impress me much. Frankly, I would look elsewhere.

But if you need to find a speciality pan, pastry bags and decorating tips, or display items to get you going, Wilton is a great place to start.

Good Day Sunshi… Oh, It’s Raining

Twistie — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 17:58:55 +0000

(via Pink Frosting)
Chances are your wedding plans don’t include stormy weather. But sometimes your plans don’t really matter to the universe. It rains when it will rain, and snows when it will snow.

The best way to look at an unexpected bit of precipitation on your wedding day is as a great opportunity to get some truly spectacular photos that will stand out from other wedding albums.

(via Andre Duerinckx)
The thing I love about this photo is how the umbrella co-ordinates with the wedding colors… though I can’t help thinking how hard it is on those bridesmaids to stand there in the cold in those little sundresses.

(via Tom Philo Photography)
Of course, if you’re holding an outdoor ceremony in Oregon, chances are you have more umbrellas handy.
(via Ravenburg Photography)
I adore these photos, especially the one on the left. The casual sweetness of the jacket thrown over her shoulders utterly delights me. Do be sure to go check out the whole album. There are some great shots in it!
(via Say Anything)
The lovely lady who posted this photo of her wedding was hoping to win a new set of wedding photos because of her disastrous day… but I have to say I would never have guessed without reading her story, because this picture of the bride and her maids protecting their wedding finery with garbage bag ponchos strikes me as the most fabulous example of making lemonade I’ve seen in yonks.

Whatever happened with the contest she entered, I sincerely hope she’s come to appreciate what an awesome image that really is.
(via Love Olio)
Or you can always do what this delightful couple did and ignore the weather. After all, they have their love to keep them warm.

Sometimes You Just Have to Roll With the Punches

Twistie — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 18:06:28 +0000

Something goes wrong at every wedding. Sometimes it’s something small, like an inopportune sneeze in the middle of the vows. Sometimes it’s something huge, like the caterer or the florist disappearing at the last minute. And sometimes it’s a photo op gone really, really wrong!

In the middle of this photoshoot, taken by Jeff Hayford and posted on reddit.com, the bridal party had gone out on a small pier for a formal shot, when the pier collapsed.

Nobody was hurt, but that’s one unforgettable wedding album this couple has. Go check out the photos. They’re priceless. If nothing else, they’ll certainly put any wedding day disaster you’ve been fearing into perspective!

On the Big Day, Be Sure You Know the Words

Christa Terry — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 09:52:42 +0000

All right, my lovelies, I cannot even begin to describe how fantastic this is. When a friend first passed it on to me, I assumed it was just a video made to look like a wedding. But no, as it turns out, there is – or was, since the video isn’t new – a company called LOCKDOWN that billed itself as specializing in wedding lip sync videos featuring brides and grooms and wedding parties and guests all participating. Have a look:

The best part is that this particular video made the rounds a few years back and inspired other couples to either having the same thing done by video experts or, if they were a bit technical and musical themselves, to DIY it. I am wholly impressed by what some couples are able to do and the services they are able to find.

Would you do something like this or hire a service to create a wedding lip sync video for you? I think if you limited participation to the couple and the bridesmaids and groomsmen, it wouldn’t necessarily be that difficult to do on your own. It would only get really complicated when you started asking your wedding guests and in-laws to participate in what is essentially a wedding day side project. Not everyone, I’d imagine, would fancy the notion of playing a part in your wedding music video! (Though I certainly would, so do feel free to invite me to your reception.)

Roll Out the Gowns!

Twistie — Sun, 10 Jul 2011 14:45:46 +0000

NtB Loves Fortune Teller Wedding Programs!

Christa Terry — Thu, 07 Jul 2011 09:54:00 +0000

In Nevada, where The Beard grew up, they called them cootie catchers. In New York, they were fortune tellers. In either case, these simple, folded paper sheets make easy DIY wedding programs – or seating cards or recyclable wedding favors or reception menus, for that matter. I’ve even read about some couples putting them at reception tables to help break the ice.

But I still think simple paper fortune tellers make the best wedding programs, especially when done a bit cleverly, since they give wedding guests something not only to read, but also to do. (Even if it is just flipping paper.) Which really comes in handy during that inevitable pre-ceremony delay! Here are some from around the net:

Cute cut-outs on this one - simple paper can get pretty fancy!

Beautiful fortune teller wedding programs spotted on Delightfully Engaged

No time to DIY? Get custom cootie catchers from katskrafts on Etsy

For the DIY set, Ruffled has a fortune teller wedding program template that brides and grooms can download and customize with everything from details about the couple and ceremony to actual fortunes or other conversation starts, though I think it would be sweet to see hand-drawn wedding program cootie catchers. Er, for those who either are having smaller weddings or feel inclined to practice their pretty script on 150 of the things, that is.

Tiny Touches: Floral Ice Cubes, Floral Ties

Christa Terry — Wed, 15 Jun 2011 09:02:38 +0000

Sometimes it’s the tiny touches that make a wedding beautiful – which is good news for those of us who can’t exactly fit the big luxuries into our budgets. What kind of tiny touches, you may be asking.

How about floral ice cubes? Which your wedding caterer may be able to provide. And aren’t that hard if you’re handling your own wedding catering. You can order edible flowers in bulk online, and floral ice cubes can make even simple things like water feel more luxurious.

Easy pretty touches for the DIY bride (or your caterer)

Or if flowers on ice aren’t your thing, consider spicing up your groom’s and groomsmen attire with floral ties for the guys. At one wedding, the groomsmen’s ties coordinated with the maid of honor’s dress, and the effect is really striking and fun.

Floral ties on the guys? Gorgeous!

Tiny touches can be anything, from mismatched, thrifted embroidered linens on your reception tables to something like puzzle place cards. What tiny touches will make your wedding extra beautiful?

LOVE/HATE: The, Um, Perfect Pair Edition

Christa Terry — Fri, 03 Jun 2011 09:05:25 +0000

Naturally, this being Wedding Photography Week, this edition of LOVE/HATE has to do with photos! Specifically, wedding photographs that are taken in such a way as to… actually, I’m not quite sure how you’d explain what’s happening here. Which I assume is happening on purpose.

Nice pair, er, pears!

The other assumption that I would charitably make is that the couple in question was the sort that would be okay with having a snap in their wedding album that was a play on the whole perfect pear thing. Perfect pear, perfect pair. You see? Or maybe it was just an accident? What do you think of cutesy wedding photos that are vaguely naughty?